’16 Letters is a television special inspired by the Letters of 1916: A Year in the Life project. Filmed in the GPO, the headquarters of the rebel forces in the 1916 Rising, and the heart of Irelands postal network in that era, the 75 minute programme is presented by Ryan Tubridy and features extracts of some of the letters written by ordinary Irish people in 1916.
There is the heart rending account of Marie Martin searching for news of her younger brother Charlie, missing in Greece. Marie’s grandniece Andrea fills Ryan in on her remarkable life story. There too are the love letters of James and May Finn as they prepare for their marriage in that fateful year.
There is the dramatic account of Patrick Carphin, whose daughter Doreen was wounded on Easter Monday. Ryan meets his grandson Blair Halliday, whose mother came close to death that day. And he meets Una Ni Callanain, granddaughter of executed leader Michael Mallin, whose last letter to his wife Agnes is an emotional outpouring of grief and faith.
’16 Letters will be broadcast on RTE One on Easter Sunday at 7pm.
If you’re watching along, use the hashtag #16Letters to join in the conversation.
